Wade and Make-a-Wish revisit Robot Entertainment after Echo Prime release
A little while ago Robot Entertainment took part in a Make-a-Wish request for Wade Sharp, a boy who struggles with brittle bone disease (Osteogenesis Imperfecta) which makes it very difficult to engage in physical activities. His condition means that video games are a very important part of Wade’s life. In June earlier this year the bots welcomed Wade to the studio to help make his wish come true. Wade’s wish was to see how games were made and to become a character in a video game.
After spending some time with the bots Wade’s very own model was created for Echo Prime and was included in the game. Presenting “Wade The Supermaster” as below:
Now with Echo Prime’s release Wade The Supermaster is now unlockable in game! To celebrate the release of Echo Prime and Wade’s character the bots invited Wade back into the studio and presented him with his very own iPad so that he can enjoy Echo Prime.
- Robot CEO Patrick Hudson presents Wade with his new iPad
The question is have you managed to unlock and meet the Supermaster yet? Get playing Echo Prime and see if you can unlock the Hero!
Robot Entertainment announces “Echo Prime” – Sci-fi action RPG
Great news for all Robot Fans. The bots have today announced their newest mobile game heading to iOS devices from today. Say hello to Echo Prime the sci-fi action RPG with real time combat! In Echo Prime players take up the role of the “Enforcer” who battles various sci-fi aliens, pirates and mercenaries as they travel across the universe to uncover secrets and discover the mysterious “Echoes”. To help explain things better Robot have graced us with an excellent trailer showcasing the gameplay.
Echo Prime is an RPG game that’s made for touch. Players explore the universe unlocking new abilities and upgrades after discovering the “Echoes”. As players gain more skills they face off against tougher space enemies. However in Robot Entertainment style there is of course a good level of strategy as part of the game. Once players start collecting echoes they can then configure their own personal load out based on the echoes they feel work best for them. Much like configuring the load-out used in Orcs Must Die levels. Looking at the screenshot below it appears the load-out configuration is suitably detailed for strategists but also restrained enough for casual players. Striking the balance between hard-core and casual can be tricky but it seems like Robot may well have this covered.
As we can see from the video above one of the key features of the game is the integration of touch controls. Players tap and swipe to battle enemies and use special abilities, it will certainly be interesting to see how this is executed. Another exciting feature is the random campaign generation. This means the experience playing each level varies each time. Players may find different enemies in different locations and different types and location of item drops etc. Keeps players thinking!
Echo Prime is available for iOS devices from today 25th October. An Android version for Echo Prime is confirmed to be coming shortly after the release of Echo Prime but there are no dates fixed for its release. But rest assured, it won’t be anywhere near as long as the wait for Hero Academy.
More information including screenshots and the official press release are as follows. Echo Prime is available to download right now from the App Store. Head on over and check it out!
Screenshots
Press Release
Plano, TX – October 23, 2013 – Robot Entertainment today announced their new mobile game Echo Prime, an epic sci-fi action RPG for iOS devices. With real-time combat designed and tuned specifically for touch-based devices, Echo Prime takes players on a journey across the stars, through a wide array of exciting locations to battle fearsome enemies and huge bosses. Echo Prime is the second foray into mobile game development for Robot Entertainment, the developer best known for the Orcs Must Die! series and the 2012 AIAS Mobile Game of the Year, Hero Academy. Echo Prime will be available on the App Store on October 24th, 2013 and will soon be coming to Android devices.
Watch the trailer: http://youtu.be/6Cm-jf0mIZ4
As an elite Enforcer, players will battle hordes of dangerous alien creatures, space pirates, and killer mercenaries with blaster and blade as they travel from star to star, uncovering the secrets of the multiverse. Players will make contact with the Echoes, mysterious beings from alternate universes who will lend players their abilities and aid in their quest to save humanity from an alien menace. As players level up their Enforcers, they will acquire a myriad of powerful new weapons and armor. They’ll watch their abilities grow to unmatched levels and take on the most fearsome opponents in the galaxy in randomized campaign missions.
Echo Prime features:
- Made for Touch – The real-time action gameplay in Echo Prime has been specifically designed with touch devices in mind. Tap and swipe to fight and use special abilities.
- Echoes of the Multiverse – Discover and unlock dozens of “Echoes,” alien life forms from alternate universes. As you build connections with them, Echoes will offer you powers and abilities to help you on your missions. Experiment and find the best combinations to customize your ability loadout.
- Share Echoes – Use your friends’ Echoes in combat to help them level-up, and level up your Echoes when your friends use them!
- Upgrade Your Arsenal – Unlock over 100 pieces of gear with a diverse mix of deadly effects, from fire to toxic.
- Random Campaign Generation – Echo Prime features an action-driven story campaign with randomly generated missions. Every experience is different!
For more information, check out http://www.EchoPrimeApp.com
Hero Academy arrives on Android!
It may have been a long time coming but Robot Entertainment have today soft launched Hero Academy on Android devices! This is obviously fantastic news for those with Android devices who have eagerly been awaiting to play the game on the move with their mobile devices.
Playing Hero Academy on Android is exactly the same as playing on your PC or Mac, you can login with your same account details and you can play your games any time anywhere! The game is available for download via the Google Play store on the link below:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.robotentertainment.heroacademy
One thing to bear in mind though, is that as Android covers a vast array of different devices on dis-similar hardware, this means that unfortunately Hero Academy is not compatible on all Android devices. A list of compatible devices can be found on Robot’s website. However for readers reference the list of compatible devices is as below:
| Acer Iconia Tab |
| Archos 101 Titanium |
| Archos 80 Platinum |
| ASUS Google Nexus 7 |
| ASUS Transformer |
| ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity |
| ASUS Transformer Prime |
| HTC Droid DNA |
| HTC EVO 4G LTE |
| HTC One |
| HTC One S |
| HTC One V |
| HTC One X |
| LG Google Nexus 4 |
| LG Optimus F3 |
| LG Optimus G |
| LG Optimus L5 II |
| LG Optimus L7 II |
| LG Optimus L9 |
| Motorola Droid 3 |
| Motorola Droid 4 |
| Motorola Droid RAZR |
| Motorola Droid RAZR HD |
| Motorola XOOM |
| Motorola XOOM 2 |
| NOOK HD |
| NOOK HD+ |
| Samsung Galaxy Note |
| Samsung Galaxy Note II |
| Samsung Galaxy S2 |
| Samsung Galaxy S3 |
| Samsung Galaxy S4 |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1″ |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7″ |
| Samsung Google Galaxy Nexus |
| Samsung Google Nexus 10 |
Dave Pottinger on Cavamania post-mortem
Dave Pottinger, founder and CEO of BonusXP has posted his Cavemania post-mortem blog on Gamasutra. Post-mortems are always very interesting reading and Cavemania’s is no exception. In the post we learn about how Cavemania started off as an RPG game as opposed to the “match 3” game we see in the finished product. The blog also talks about various highs and lows during the development and describes the studios design methodology.
Starting from the beginning just how did BonusXP end up with a match-3 Age of Empires esque strategy game? The project first started off and an RPG which was worked on by one full-time programmer.
The RPG got prototyped in a week with some cutting-edge programmer art. It quickly morphed into a crafting-based RPG within a few days. The game’s codename, Combo, even comes from that crafting focus. The week after, some Zelda-elements crept in. We were solving puzzles and doing mini-dungeon raids.
However the problem with RPG games is that they are quite ambitious and would need alot of development and resource to make. With BonusXP being a relatively small studio <15 people the RPG project was simply too big for them to execute at the high standards they were looking for with the staff numbers they had. Taking stock of things, BonusXP re-assessed and decided to pursue a tile based game which ended up being taking a “match 3” approach.
To this day, no one remembers (or is willing to take credit for?) the suggestion of making a Match-3 game with Combo. Who in their right mind would suggest that anyway? Can you think of a more crowded, bloodthirsty genre to enter?
Nevertheless, it was an easy game to prototype. We batted around some ideas for making it unique. We had all this code lying around that dealt with combat and moving guys around. Why not use that? The next day, we had characters on the board fighting in and around the Match-3 items.
It is quite amazing how ideas change so quickly during game development! The result of course was an excellent game that currently boasts a 4.5 / 5 rating on iTunes and the Play Store. So how did things go during the development? What were the highs and lows? Mr Pottinger provides us with the insight.
Win – Unified Senior Team
One of the benefits of having a smaller studio is that you don’t have to worry too much about corporate structure. At BonusXP everyone on the team gets design credit which means that everyone is involved in the design process. There are no leads at BonusXP which are usually found in larger studios which means there is no single person taking an over-riding decision on the way forward for the game.
Everyone is involved in decisions from hiring to the games we make. We don’t mandate crunch. We sync as a team twice a week and otherwise coordinate over email, chat, or our online task board. Everyone gets design credit. We don’t have leads. Everyone works from home on Fridays.
As it happens until their most recent hire the entire team at BonusXP was formed of Ex-Ensemble Studios staff, or ex Bonfire/Zynga Dallas staff. It must certainly help a new studio to get off the ground with previous friends and work colleagues.
Win – Iterative Development
At BonusXP each game goes through a new build every day. This means the project continues to grow day by day with visible changes being made available to the whole team. It seems the development process for Cavemania went very well. Dave points out that the team never got stuck on “grungy week long tasks”. This enabled the team to flourish and keep engaged. The studio also had development help from their publisher Yodo1 and had access to their team of alpha testers made up of friends and other trusted people. Throughout the development the team took the approach of trying to create workable concepts for ideas to see how effective each one turned out to be before spending a ton of time on something which in the end wouldn’t end up in he final product.
We encourage breadth-wise development. We’d rather see a shallow version of a complete feature before we invest a ton of time. Yes, this can sometimes take longer. But, that’s okay because we’re more unified along the way. We’ll always make that tradeoff. We pair that indulgence with a ruthless focus on re-scoping. If we can avoid doing something we don’t really need, we can redirect that time onto polishing something we already have.
Win – Great Partners
BonusXP have chosen to partner with many of the same great names we have heard before. Publisher Yodo1 has also enjoyed great success with Robot Entertainment’s Hero Academy and music partner Gl33k had also worked on Robot’s Age of Empires Online, Hero Academy and Orcs Must Die! Choosing the right partner is very important and it seems BonusXP have chosen wisely.
Cavemania is our baby, so we spent a lot of time searching for the right publisher. We wanted to make sure we partnered with someone who loved the game and understood our philosophy. Yodo1 has been a fantastic fit for us. Secretly, I think they like the game even more than we do. They’ve been aligned with us every step of the way on prioritizing what matters and what doesn’t. Like us, they’ve always put quality before monetization and even helped us with some of the code.
Not-so-Win – Mixing casual and hardcore is tricky
Cavamania is quite a unique title and does well at demonstrating how a game can be both casual and retain some of the more hardcore strategy elements at the same time. The trouble with this kind of game is that mixing the causal and hardcore expierencies can prove very difficult to pull off well. For these hybrid games if the game is too casual it may turn away many of the hardcore crowd and vice versa. Who would have thought Age of Empires could be mixed with a match 3 style. BonusXP have done very well to pull this off, this doesnt mean it was easy though.
Once we decided to go with the “Units plus Match-3” angle, we hoped to make a simpler, more casual game. Unfortunately, the very thing that made the game fun and different from other Match-3 games is somewhat at odds with a more casual audience.
Cavemania has a lot of combat. We enjoy that, but it’s possibly a turn-off for some folks. We tried several variants without combat, but they weren’t nearly as fun. Similarly, it’s hard to have a deep, upgrade-focused strategy game without showing numbers somewhere, so we did that.
In the end, we made the choice to stick with what was fun for us. I think we’ve done a good job blending that deeper gameplay with a straightforward freemium business model. I’m sure the players will tell us if we’ve made the right choice.
Not-so-Win – Localization
Localization is something that crops up every now and then in many post-mortems. It can be tough to work out when to start localization but luckily having partners on board can greatly help in this particularly difficult task.
It’s a rare game that starts localization perfectly on time. We are certainly not one of those! We knew we were waiting too long to dig into localization. But, with a small team, tradeoffs have to be made. We had to do a ridiculous scramble to get all languages in place for the worldwide launch. We definitely would not have succeeded without the seemingly infinite help from LocLabs and Yodo1.
Not-so-Win – Making games and business development at the same time
BonusXP is full of talented game designers. Unfortunately there is alot of extra headaches associated with running a studio that are unrelated to game development. Everyones favourite words like “Admin”, “HR” and “Legal” are all present here. BonusXP did hire a producer mid development on Cavamania to help ease the pressure these tasks had on the upper management, however as Dave points out the team did lose approximately 1 months worth of time to these arduous tasks.
We are a small studio. We don’t have dedicated staff to handle business development, legal contracts, HR, or admin duties. Hell, we even have to bring in our own snacks.
Jokes aside, we make no bones about putting things in the right order. We are building a long-term studio where the employees come first. When there is a conflict, the business concerns win out vs. adding another feature to the game. That’s the right cosmic order, but it does make the games take longer to get done. We easily “lost” an entire month on Cavemania due to those studio overhead responsibilities.
With a prodcuer now in situe hopefully these types headaches will be mitigated in future BonusXP games.
This pretty much sums up the highlights from Dave’s Gamasutra blog. Be sure to read the whole thing over at Gamasutra to read more. There is a ton more info on the full post on iterative development and the future for BonusXP so its well worth a look. Go check it out now!
Cavemania Review
BonusXP have just released their latest mobile game on iOS and Android – Cavemania! The game is published by Yodo1, the same partner Robot Entertainment used to publish Hero Academy in China. Cavemania is a “Match 3” game, this means the core concept is similar to games like Bejeweled where you much like colours to score points. In Cavemania you match resources like food, wood, gold and stone. A nod to Age of Empires! However, Cavemania is about a whole lot more than just matching like tiles, taking that Age of Empires likeness further there is a whole lot of strategy involved that really sets this game apart.
Gameplay
So the question you might be asking yourself – How do we get Age of Empires like strategy in a mobile game, and at that, a match 3 game? Well that would be a good question. BonusXP have pulled it off really well. The game starts off with the typical match 3 game play, but soon after levels will ask you to battle against enemies such as sabretooths that move across the board to try and take you out, but also players will be tasked with collecting certain materials in order to build structures like granaries, quarries and lumber camps whilst at the same time defending them from the enemies. This is where the strategy comes into play. With Age of Empires you must collect materials to build up your defence and attack your enemies. This is just how Cavemania works, just in match 3 style. To add more to the mix each level has a certain number of moves a player is allowed to make before it is game over. Players must find the most effective way of completing each level in the least amount of turns to get the best score.
There are tons and tons of different level types and combinations. Sometimes players will be on the offense, sometimes on the defense. There are other objectives too such as trying to clear out certain parts of the map by making match 3 moves in certain squares. There are so many levels, absolutely tons of content. The Chieften is the face of the game but there are many characters players can choose to bring onto the board including warriors, villagers, healers, archers and more. Each character having their unique properties and strategy, players need choose carefully as to which types of character may best for certain levels.
The level scoring system is on a one star, two star, and three star basis plus an overall numerical score. BonusXP engages players socially by showing their friends scores for each level to encourage competition and this works very well. Players can sign into the game with their Facebook credentials too which promotes ease of sharing high scores to Facebook.
Beaten by BigDog!
Graphics and Sound
Cavemania is a pleasure to play, with excellent graphics and 3d models for the characters. The design of the resources on the map and the colours used makes everything easily identifiable. A bright colour pallette really helps the overall pleasant feel. The sound is good and works well supporting the visuals queues. Cavemania takes forward Ensemble legacy, a brightly coloured and very appealable colour pallette.
Upgrades and purchases
Cavemania is free to play and much like BonusXP’s previous game, Monster Crew, it has its own upgrade system and in-game purchasing. As players complete levels they earn gold which can be used to purchase upgrades. These upgrades in the form of weapons and defensive items for characters but also vanity items such as new hairstyles and colours. Gold is earned by playing but they can also be earned via real money via in-app purchases. This is a fairly standard affair and typical business model. Players can purchase gold such as 30,000 gold for £1.21. There are lots of different coin packs all the way up to 200,000 gold for £6.22. The pricing for the upper gold packs is very good, but it might of been nice to have a sub £1 gold pack for the lowest gold denominator.
There are other things that can be bought with real money. One off consumable items like meteor shows that stun enemies or heal packs that heal characters on the board. These can come in handy for those tricky levels. They are little on the pricey side, with a single use meteor shower priced at £1.21 for instance. Cavemania also lets players purchase permanent upgrades for fixed cost, such as boosting lives up to 6, permanently for £3.15. These can be a well worthwhile investment and gives players alot of choice. Its nice to see a good array of different upgrade paths.
In conclusion
Taking everything into account one can only conclude that Cavemania is another fantastic game from the creative minds at BonusXP. They have certainly taken their time with this game to produce a very polished and deep experience. Their hard work has certainly paid off, Cavemania is full of tons of content, tons of possibilities and tons of strategy. This is certainly a game that will keep thumbs busy for a long time and the changing objectives between levels keeps people engaged and keeps things fresh and exciting. Its certainly amazing how Bonus have managed to capture the Age of Empires spirit into a mobile game and I encourage all Ensemble fans to check it out on their iOS and Android devices. The game is free to play so you have nothing to lose, infact you have everything to gain! Cavemania is tons of fun. Go check it out now!
If I were to score it out of 5, it would definitely be a 5!
Age of Empires Online no longer available from August 22nd after GFWL closure
Many gamers will have heard that for a while Microsoft has been aiming to replace their currency for Xbox Live and Games for Windows Live from Microsoft Points to real local currency. Ie. Dollars, Euros and Pounds Sterling, or what ever your local currency is. In doing this the Xbox Live and Games for Windows Live services will need to make the switch over. This is scheduled to be be kicking off on August 22nd.
However, the bad news is that Games for Windows Live will not be making the transition to local currency and as such, Microsoft is infact closing the GFWL service all together. Infact as of just August 22nd the Games for Windows Live Store will be closed to new purchases of any kind. This means that no additional copies of Age of Empires Online or any DLC will be available via this store from August 22nd. It would seem that any DLC purchased through Steam would also not be available based on a now removed article on the AOE-O support website as reported by Age of Empires Online Heaven. Although the Steam issue is still awaiting official confirmation.
The bad news continues I’m afraid. While existing players will be able to continue to play Age of Empires Online beyond the August 22nd cut of date, the game will be shuttered completely on July 1st 2014 when the entire GFWL system will be taken offline.
This is of course very sad news for the co-developed Robot Entertainment and Gas Powered Games title. Many AOE-O fans are incredibly disappointed by the closure news and discussions are aplenty on the official forums. According to a recent article on Gamasutra there was another “post-mortem” conducted on Age of Empires Online by its Executive Producer, Kevin Perry at GDC 2013 just recently. The presentation was titled “F2P the wrong way” indicated that there was not enough content at launch, and by the time they were rolling out new content the efforts unfortunately did not result in bigger enough population boosts. As a result development was halted in January earlier this year.
I would say that now would be the time to spend any Microsoft Points you were thinking of spending on AOE-O before August 22nd. However, as it seems the game will be closing entirely in July 2014 this will no doubt be a quandary for many players.
Stay tuned for REF for further updates on this sad situation.
BonusXP and Yodo1 announce “Cavemania”!
Those of you who were fans of the excellent mobile game Monster Crew you will be very excited to hear about BonusXP’s newest mobile game that has just been announced – Cavemania! BonusXP are partnering with Chinese publisher Yodo1, the same publisher who Robot Entertainment selected to take Hero Academy to Chinese territories. So what are the genius minds at BonusXP upto this time around you might ask. Well the good news the game features a strong blend of strategy as we have come to expect from our Ex-Ensemble founded studios. Cavemania is a match-3 strategy game where casual match 3 gameplay meets resource-management strategy.
The Story
The Chieften
The game is all about this fellow, the Chieften. At one point in time the Chieften was the bees knees and helped is clan climb to the top of the food chain. He was very well-respected. However, one day tragedy struck and the Chieften and his tribe were no longer top of the food chain. Instead dinosaurs have begun taking over and it is up to you to help the Chieften get back to his righteous position at the top of the food chain!
Its great to see that BonusXP have taken the time to put together a back story for the game in similar vein to what they did with Monster Crew. And just like before they even have an awesome, and high quality, video explaining the story. Check it out:
The Game
At heart the game is a match 3 game. Players are presented with a board and by matching 3 of the same thing they can proceed. As players win levels they can unlock tons of items, upgradeable units and buildings. However there is a whole lot more to the game than just matching 3 things. Oh yes, this is the great minds of BonusXP we are talking about. Here is what they have to say about their game.
- Enjoy truly old-school Strategy. Inspired by Age of Empires, you will lead your tribe on a journey through prehistoric perils. Plan your strategy as you gather resources using familiar match-3 gameplay. Place units and buildings on the game board and use them to achieve victory! But choose wisely, because you’ll be fighting to survive against the elements and prehistoric foes.
- BONK AND SMASH! Unleash powerful special abilities. Send a Sabertooth flying with the Warrior Bonk. Stun a snarling T-Rex with your Slinger. Use your Hunter to lure a hungry dinosaur into an ambush.
- Evolve your tribe. Advance through the campaign to unlock a bevy of new units and buildings, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Increase your power with persistent upgrades to your favorite units. Explore multiple paths to victory depending on the units and buildings that you choose to use.
- Every Chieftain enjoys a friendly rivalry. See your friends’ progress. Beat their scores. Challenge them to beat you!
Screenshots
Word Chums arrives on Android!
Great news for all of you with Android devices – Word Chums has finally landed! Thats right! The brilliant minds at PeopleFun have brought their very popular iOS word game to Android. Word Chums is not your usual word game, its jam-packed with features which makes it far more interesting than your run-of-the-mill word game. For starters it is aesthetically pleasing with bright colours in typical Ensemble style design methodology which really helps it stand out from the crowd and makes it a pleasure to play. Not only that but challenges, items for your chums and team multiplayer are key features. Word Chums really does take the genre to the next level.
You can create your own personal “Chum” with your favourite colour and items can be purchased with coins to customise their appearance. Coins can either be purchased or earned through playing the game and completing challenges. You can chat to your friends in-game too. The user interface is very responsive and a breeze to navigate. It doesn’t get much better than this folks! Rest assured it will be hard to go back to your old word game after trying Word Chums!
Word Chums is seriously addictive, once you pick it up it’s really hard to stop. If you don’t believe me take a look at the below video to find out more about the Word Chums craze.
The game is free to play on Android 2.2 and up. The free version is supported by advertisements but the premium version of the game available for just $1.99 removes these ads. Download the game today, free from the Play Store!
Tony Goodman live on Reddit “Ask me anything” right now!
Tony Goodman is now speaking live on his Reddit “Ask me anything”. Come and join in and pose your questions to the man who started it all!
http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1j64tv/im_tony_goodmanfounder_of_ensemble_studios_age_of/
Tony Goodman to take part in Reddit – Ask Me Anything!
Great news of all Ensemble, Robot and PeopleFun fans – the man behind it all is due to host an Ask Me Anything (AMA) next Saturday! This will be your chance to pose your questions to the man at the top! From Age of Empires to Word Chums, anything goes in the AMA!
It’ll all be kicking off next Saturday 27th July at 1PM CST. Or 8pm UK time! PeopleFun and Remember ES will be posting links to the Reddit URL just before the start time. There is no better time than now to be following @PeopleFun and @Remember_ES on Twitter!
Be sure to think hard about your burning questions and Remember ES will see you there!
